Japanese Gothic

One of my most anticipated books of 2026 is out now: Japanese Gothic by Kylie Lee Baker. I’ve wanted to read this author since she released The Keeper of Night in 2021, and I’m glad to finally be diving in now.

The title Japanese Gothic may recall Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, but that’s where the similarities end. Indeed, this novel is less strictly Gothic, blending in additional genres and themes. It starts with Lee Turner, a young man who’s been self-medicating since his mom disappeared a decade ago. Now’s he’s on the run after apparently murdering his NYU roommate, though he can’t remember why he did it or where he hid the body. He chooses to stay with his dad, now living in Japan. This is where Lee meets the ghost of a samurai girl from 1877; Sen lived in this house with her family, though in her timeline she’s still alive. This may be less of a haunting and more a tale of slipping through time, a bit sci-fi mixed with each character’s personal horrors. Will either survive this next week? And will they get answers to their questions before their fate catches up?

What I Liked:

• Numerous crimes and creepy elements. Lee’s missing mom and murdered roommate; the ghost of a girl who hasn’t died yet; an abusive father who’s built a life on killing and inspiring fear… There’s no shortage of macabre plot points and characters here. There’s a lot of mystery surrounding both Lee’s mom and his roommate. How does it all connect?
• Unreliable narrator. I love psychological narratives, and especially when you can’t fully trust the main character. Lee has a fair amount of amnesia around disturbing events in his life. He’s also been self-medicating with a variety of pills that stave off his anxiety. What secrets is Lee hiding from himself?
• Toxic father relationships. Sen’s dad is the more obviously toxic parent. He’s cruel, violent, and abusive, yet Sen looks up to him and yearns for his approval. Lee’s dad seems more normal on the surface, but as we learn more about the family, the father-son dynamic starts to reveal its true nature.
• Japanese folklore and samurai customs. Being a samurai was already outdated in 1877. Sen’s dad was holding onto past traditions, and at what cost? Sen may be the last samurai in the end. In between chapters, we also get excerpts from a Japanese folk tale, which adds to the sense of setting and culture.
• Haunting… or glitch in time? This isn’t a simple ghost story. Rather, this is more along the lines of two timelines intersecting, allowing Lee and Sen to meet each other despite the 150 years separating them.

Audiobook:

Natalie Naudus narrates Japanese Gothic, and as always, she does an exceptional job. I’ve listened to several books in her voice, and she’s a queen among narrators. She captures all the nuances and complex emotions here, elevating an already captivating novel.

Final Thoughts

Japanese Gothic isn’t at all what I expected going in, but I loved it just the same. It offers so many layers, and with the unreliable narrator and blend of genres, it keeps readers guessing until the end. It has a slow build-up, but that crescendo to the final reveals is impeccable. I look forward to reading more from Kylie Lee Baker soon—I already have several of her books on my TBR and waiting!

Special thanks to Harlequin Trade Publishing, Harlequin Audio, and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book!

Get the Book

You can buy Japanese Gothic here – it’s available as a hardcover, ebook, and audiobook.

Japanese Gothic by Kylie Lee Baker
Audiobook Narrator	Natalie Naudus
Audience	Adult
Genre	Gothic; Horror
Setting	Japan
Number of Pages	352
Format I Read	Audiobook & Ebook (NetGalley ARCs)
Original Publication Date	April 14, 2026
Publisher	Hanover Square Press

Official Summary

New York Times Most Anticipated Book for 2026
USA TODAY Most Anticipated Books of 2026
Goodreads Readers’ Most Anticipated Books of 2026
Book Riot “Our Most Anticipated Books of 2026”

In this lyrical, wildly inventive horror novel interwoven with Japanese mythology, two people living centuries apart discover a door between their worlds.

October, 2026: Lee Turner doesn’t remember how or why he killed his college roommate. The details are blurred and bloody. All he knows is he has to flee New York and go to the one place that might offer refuge—his father’s new home in Japan, a house hidden by sword ferns and wild ginger. But something is terribly wrong with the house: no animals will come near it, the bedroom window isn’t always a window, and a woman with a sword appears in the yard when night falls.

October, 1877: Sen is a young samurai in exile, hiding from the imperial soldiers in a house behind the sword ferns. A monster came home from war wearing her father’s face, but Sen would do anything to please him, even turn her sword on her own mother. She knows the soldiers will soon slaughter her whole family when she sees a terrible omen: a young foreign man who appears outside her window.

One of these people is a ghost, and one of these stories is a lie.

Something is hiding beneath the house of sword ferns, and Lee and Sen will soon wish they never unburied it.

For readers who love:

• Grady Hendrix and Stephen King
• Japanese mythology
• Friendship and family themes
• Terrifying, gory stories
• Horror with heart
• A new take on the classic haunted house trope